On the next episode of Sounds of Film, Tom Needham welcomes Steven Blush, acclaimed author, music historian, journalist, and filmmaker best known for his work documenting underground music, including American Hardcore. Blush joins Needham to discuss The Song of Hiawatha, a documentary about Hiawatha Bailey whose life brings together punk rock, radical politics, and the counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s. The film was a recent Official Selection at the Long Island Music & Entertainment Hall of Fame Music Documentary Film Festival. Hiawatha Bailey was a member of Ann Arbor’s White Panther Party, a radical political organization inspired by the Black Panther Party that sought to unite political resistance with cultural expression and community action. Bailey lived in the legendary Hill Street communes, worked with the underground rock scene, and witnessed firsthand the connections between music and revolutionary politics. His experiences brought him into contact with influential figures including John Sinclair, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, the MC5, and members of the Stooges. He later founded the punk band Cult Heroes, bringing the independent, do-it-yourself spirit of political activism into his musical career. Featuring rare archival photographs and footage, along with appearances by Iggy Pop and Patti Smith, the documentary recovers a largely overlooked chapter of American underground history. In this episode, Needham and Blush explore the relationship between music and political resistance, the legacy of the White Panther Party, and the lasting influence of the punk rock ethos. Their conversation also examines the challenges of building alternative communities, the consequences of radical political engagement, and the continuing relevance of the counterculture’s ideas about independence, solidarity, and social change. Sounds of Film has featured an extraordinary range of guests from the worlds of music, cinema, politics, and culture. Past guests include Billy Joel, Laurie Anderson, Chuck D, DMC, Michael Moore, Chris Hedges, William H. Macy, Paul Williams, Nile Rodgers, Gary U.S. Bonds, Wendy & Lisa, Morris Day, Philip Glass’s music director Michael Riesman, filmmaker Jordan Peele, actor Daniel Kaluuya, filmmaker Alexandra Pelosi, director Kenneth Lonergan, and music journalist Anthony DeCurtis. These conversations reflect the show’s longstanding interest in the artists and ideas that shape popular culture and challenge conventional thinking. Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is a long-running film, music, and ideas program that has aired for more than 30 years on WUSB and features conversations with acclaimed filmmakers, musicians, authors, and other influential cultural figures. The podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.
